The invention concerns a process for the serial transmission of digital measurement data from a transmitter to a remotely disposed receiver.
Hereinafter a conceptual distinction is made between values which are actually measured (=measurement values) and calculated values (=exact values), in which respect the latter are identified in that fashion for the reason that, as will be shown in detail hereinafter, within the respectively required range of measurement accuracy, they coincide with the associated, actually measured values, and can thus be correctly referred to as ‘exact’.
The expression that the physical parameter whose measurement values are to be transmitted is ‘continuously measured’ is intended to identify both measurement processes which continuously supply measurement values and also those in which the measurement values occur discontinuously at very short time intervals.
German laid-open application (DE-OS) No 44 43 959 discloses such a process in which the transmitter is arranged directly at a sensor and serves to transmit measurement data which are supplied by the sensor and which are prepared for transmission in digital form to a remotely disposed receiver, in such a way that a minimum level of complication and expenditure in respect of the connecting lines has to be involved. In that case, the sensor is a measuring device for permanently detecting a physical parameter, for example a temperature, a pressure and so forth.
A particularly important area of use for these processes is represented by positional and in particular rotational pickup senders or sensors, in which the physical parameter to be detected is the angular position of a rotating shaft. In that situation, the shaft may be stationary and it may also rotate at a high speed of rotation, for example 12000 rpm.
If, for a situation of use of that kind, there is a requirement for a high resolution capability of for example 22 bits for a full revolution of 2 Π and if levels of acceleration or deceleration respectively of up to 1×105 s−2 are permitted, then difficulties are incurred with the known process insofar as it is necessary to select an extremely high transmission frequency or rate in order individually to transmit the very high number of increments including their sign, which occur at high speeds, in such a way that the receiver can construct the respectively current angular position practically in real time as a progressive measurement value by addition of the increments, with the correct sign, to afford the last, completely ascertained absolute value.